Author: hesty

AIG Life Insurance Company, as part of the American International Group, was the global international leader in the financial services industry. This giant has various operations in over 100 countries with additional services that include property casualty insurance, asset management services, and purchasing and underwriting subprime loans. Without the massive and controversial United States bailout, it would be in bankruptcy.

AIG has lost their coveted super high insurance ratings, where the major rating firms annually miscalculated their business practices. Now they have begun a reorganization that will constitute major selloffs while refocusing on once again becomes a dominant insurance company. Stockholders saw stock prices plummeting from its high by over 90% before now starting to stabilize.

Your big AIG question should be: Has AIG learned their lesson? Moreover, if you now or previously represented them, Have You learned your lesson?

Five things contributed to the choice of many American insurance reps to sell their insurance products to clients.

1. GREED Selling term insurance offered by AIG Life Insurance provided representatives with commission payouts often 20 to 30% higher than other major competitors.

2. SIZE Insurance representative implied to prospective clients that dealing with the largest company, meant it had to be the best. Otherwise, how could it be the largest?

3. RATINGS Many insurance reps only will sell products of the highest rated insurers. They tell themselves and clients that means financial security. Well the atomic rating bomb has exploded, injuring millions.

4. PRICE The easiest way to sell term life insurance, is to offer your prospect the lowest price on the market. Do clients buying AIG Life coverage live longer so rates are lower? Are AIG internal expenses lower, so rates are lower? (Like an expensive resort meeting in Arizona funded by American taxpayers) Do they pay their reps less? (See #1) A full combination of these would be the only way rates could be lower then competitors.

5. BUYING BUSINESS The quickest way to jump the ladder to rise upward, is for an insurance company to “buy business”. As the insurance company, you attempt to give as many clients now by whatever it takes to get more policies sold, and worry later about when claims have to be paid out. Baiting the hook was easy. Sucker in agents with higher commissions, the lowest term insurance rates, and thinking they were representing the smartest insurer out there.

AIG Life Insurance is still “buying business” today, after all the turmoil of internal problems. Watch television and you will see a closely affiliated company offering term life insurance at rates up to 70% less than others. If you somehow catch the fine print, you will see AIG mentioned as the insurer. An excellent way for AIG Life Insurance to bypass insurance representatives, and still fool consumers. A slight twist, but business as usual for them.

Selling insurance to clients should reflect the conscience of an insurance representative in recommending the right product and the right company. There are over 600 life and health insurance companies offering products in almost every state. If you are selling based highly on commission rates, company size, ratings, or price, you are probably doing a disservice to your clients.

All men and women serving in HM Forces, whether they serve with the Army, Navy or Royal Air Force, should consider getting life insurance for the financial security it provides to family members. There are special policies available not only to those in HM Armed Forces, but also international schools, teachers and expatriates.

Both international schools insurance policies and expats insurance policies provide cover that suits the requirements of those markets, which makes them more suitable for these situations than domestic insurance policies would be. However, if you are a serviceman or servicewoman you are probably more interested in the military insurance policies available. If you do not already have life insurance then perhaps it is time to take a look at some military life insurance policies. This is very important as it provides financial security for your entire family, especially if they depend on the money you bring into the household. If anything were to happen to you, your family would be left without an important source of income, so it is always better to prepare in advance for such situations.

If you know you are going to be deployed to a high risk area in a matter of weeks, or months, life insurance could be a good idea, but unfortunately most companies have limitations when it comes to insuring personnel preparing to deploy to such areas. Most life insurance companies will not provide cover if the person looking to get insured is aware of the fact that he or she will be deployed to a high risk area within the following 6 to 12 months. The solution is to get insurance way before any deployment plans start being formed, so it is better to act immediately and get insured while you are eligible.

Besides life insurance policies, there are also other insurance policies available, such as critical illness insurance cover. This policy covers both life-threatening and non-life-threatening conditions such as strokes, cancer, heart attacks, etc., and also covers debilitating conditions such as loss of limbs.

It should be noted that no insurance company is required to insure someone, so insurance companies can decide for themselves if they want to insure a certain individual or not. If the company feels the risk is too high, either due to the lifestyle of the individual, or his or her health, they can refuse to provide cover.

Those looking to get insured have the option of doing it online. Checking policies from different companies is also much easier to do online, as most of the information can be found on the website of each insurance company, and it is simply a matter of analysing which insurance company offers the best terms for a specific policy. Ordering online is simple and fast and usually it is simply a matter of filling out a form and waiting for the paperwork to arrive via email. You can also find a specially trained insurance broker who will help you find the most suitable policy for you.

Most insurance companies offer a discount if a policy is ordered online and that is a benefit that everyone should take advantage of. Discounts can get quite high and while the money saved on one trip travel insurance, for example, may not be a lot, things certainly change if you are looking at an annual insurance policy for the entire family. The money saved can be substantial, so it would be a shame not to look for the best offer and take advantage of the discount.

As previously mentioned, members of different organisations or communities may also have special discounts available just for them, like the policies for International Schools community members and their international schools insurance policies, or expatriates with their expats insurance policies. Since these policies have several advantages over domestic insurance policies, it is always better to get such a policy as opposed to a policy designed for the local population. It is not simply a matter of money, as some may think, as most of the time such insurance policies are not cheaper. It is a matter of benefits provided, and in many cases the portability of the policy from country to country. For example, military personnel looking to get military life insurance or travel insurance have cover that reflects their particular requirements.

Travel insurance policies have cancellation cover for members of HM Forces, in case the trip they were taking was cancelled due to being posted overseas or emergency and unavoidable duty. Just remember that accidents can happen and sometimes there is just no way of preventing them, so it is better to be safe than sorry, so get insured as quickly as possible.

Most will agree that Insurance Contract can be a pretty complex document to comprehend and when it comes to Health Insurance things can get even more confusing with terms like Deductible, Coinsurance, Pre-existing Conditions Limitations, Exclusions, Waiting Period, Limits Per Claim, Limits Per Year, Limits Per Lifetime, etc.

The following are, in our opinion, some of the key features to be considered when choosing an International Health Insurance plan.

Insurer’s Financial Strength

There is no point having an insurance policy that covers “everything under the sun” but when it comes to paying claim the insurer can not meet her obligation. So, the first thing you should look for when choosing an International Health Insurance plan is the financial strength of the insurance company underwriting the risk.

You want to look for an insurer that has a credit rating of at least A or A- assigned by AM Best Rating Agency which means the insurer has “Excellent” financial strength.

Administrator’s Track Record

Unlike traditional health insurance plan that provides you coverage within your home country, International Health Insurance needs to cater you with worldwide protection wherever you are and whenever you need it. Hence, you want to make sure your plan administrator has the experience in covering worldwide travelers and able to provide worldwide assistance on 24/7/365 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year) basis.

Here are some of the indicators for you to gauge your Plan Administrator:

The number of Members covered,

The number of Countries covered,

Foreign language capability of their Customer Service Team,

Availability of medical professional and

Last but not least, testimonials from satisfied customers.

Worldwide Assistance

When you are in a foreign land, you are facing the risks of:

Not knowing where to go or who to turn to when you have a medical situation in a foreign country;

Exposing yourself or your loved ones to sub-standard medical care that may further exacerbate your pain and suffering and putting your life at risk;

Emergency medical situations that may require you to be evacuated to save your life;

Emergency situations that develop due to act of war, terrorism or natural disaster

So, being able to speak to someone that speaks your language when you are in any of the above situations can be reassuring and in the case of emergency it can mean live or dead.

Ideally, your plan administrator should also provide a worldwide toll-free number for you to call for assistance from anywhere around the world.

Geographical Coverage

Due to the high medical costs in the North America, typical International Health Insurance will have 2 separate plans; one covers USA & Canada and the other excludes. Obviously, plans that cover USA & Canada cost more than those that don’t. So, choose a plan that has the geographical coverage that matches your overseas itinerary.

It is important to point out that if you are a US citizen living abroad, traditional sources of US private health insurance will not meet your needs. Geographical exclusions and provider limitations common to these policies will restrict or even eliminate the coverage available to you while you are outside the US.

If you are a non-US citizen, you may need an international medical insurance policy to supplement the coverage available to you through a plan sponsored by your government or to provide coverage while you are outside your home country. Or you may wish to have access to health care in other countries, including the US, in the event you become seriously ill.

In essence, if your lifestyle knows no geographic limits, you need an international health insurance that knows no boundaries.